Extension vision finally realized between Lakewood Ranch and Sarasota

In July of 2001, Church of Hope Executive Pastor Peter Young met with Rex Jensen, who handed him a business card.

On the card it gave Jensen's title as vice president of real estate for Schroeder-Manatee Ranch.

Young was telling the story March 2 at a press conference to open the Lakewood Ranch Boulevard Extension through to Fruitville Road in Sarasota County. He was trying to get across the fact the roadway was a long time coming to fruition.

A year after their meeting, Jensen was named president of SMR, and by 2005 was president and CEO.

All during that time, Jensen worked to have Lakewood Ranch Boulevard reach Fruitville Road, providing an option for motorists in the area who had to take Interstate 75 even though they only wanted to travel locally.

"We met outside this little trailer and talked about the possibilities of connecting Lakewood Ranch and Sarasota," Young said.

The Church of Hope was in Sarasota on Wendell Kent Road, which ran along I-75 and turned to the east. It twisted and turned and appeared torn up at times. The church's visibility to the public suffered.

After a parcel of Church of Hope land was purchased to accommodate the extension, it will have a Lakewood Ranch Boulevard address, along with much better exposure.

For the church, the new road is, indeed, a godsend.

Jensen has similar feelings about what the Lakewood Ranch Boulevard extension will mean to the region.

"It means a lot more to the area than just Lakewood Ranch," said Jensen, who hired Woodruff and Sons to build the 1.711-mile extension. "It means that every car on this road is not there."

Jensen was pointing at Interstate 75, which runs adjacent to the extension.

If Young thought he had to wait a long time, Jensen said his wait was longer.

"In my case, it's been 30 years," said Jensen, who used to discuss the possibility of such a road to former SMR CEO and President John Clarke. "What a severe gastric disturbance it has been."

Jensen said it was a common sense roadway to provide connectivity between Sarasota and Manatee counties and one that would ease traffic concerns. The Sarasota County Board of Commissioners felt differently, squashing his efforts at every turn.

He said on three occasions he had to fight to keep the commissioners from removing such a road from its comprehensive plan.

Sarasota County Commissioner Alan Maio said it might have been an antigrowth philosophy at the time, but during the March 2 press conference, he proclaimed that philosophy is "dead and gone."

He said he will have thousands fewer emails complaining about traffic problems getting from central Sarasota County to places north of University Parkway. He has been telling his constituents to be patient because traffic relief was on its way. He said the diverging diamond project at the I-75/University Parkway exchange was just one part of the equation along with the extensions of Lorraine Road and Lakewood Ranch Boulevard. He said now that all three are complete, motorists will find relief.

"This has been in the works a long, long time," Maio said. "Now we are working to take Lorraine Road through from Fruitville Road to Knights Trail. We've already decided where it will be and we are working with the land owners, who are entering into agreements."

If the roadway extension is a bonanza for Sarasota motorists, it will be just as beneficial for Lakewood Ranch and its residents and business sector.

"It's a game-changer, that's the best way I can describe it," said Dom DiMaio, President and CEO of the Lakewood Ranch Business Alliance. "I think this is a big deal for the residents of Lakewood Ranch. It opens our access."

DiMaio also said the roadway will connect Lakewood Ranch with new workforce possibilities. He said in many cases, businesses in Lakewood Ranch can't tap into the local community for employees. Roads that make Lakewood Ranch more accessible to a larger region will help.

DiMaio said he has heard residents who worry about traffic congestion on Lakewood Ranch Boulevard now that drivers can come from north of the Manatee River and take the road all the way into Sarasota.

"I think if you look at the interior section of Lakewood Ranch, almost every road is four lanes," DiMaio said. "I don't think we have a problem."

THEY SAID IT

Jeffrey Kin, artistic director of the Players Centre for Performing Arts

"This is accessibility with a capital A. This is the first step in our life line. People have thought Lakewood Ranch is so remote for us. We are stoked because our world is getting smaller."

Rex Jensen, CEO and president of Schroeder-Manatee Ranch

"This is the ultimate win-win situation and a great public-private partnership."

Peter Young, executive pastor of the Church of God

"This will be a model for other roadways. This is the handshake (between Sarasota and Manatee counties) we talked about in 2001."

Kirk Boylston, president of Lakewood Ranch Commercial Realty

"The main effect should be on the Corporate Park with all the flow of traffic. The Corporate Park will be much more visible."

Dom DiMaio, president and CEO of the Lakewood Ranch Business Alliance

"Part of our issue has been 'Where is our workforce?' In cases, it was not in Lakewood Ranch. Now we can get a workforce here more easily. This is a game-changer."